


The Elevator Incident

by zhongwritings



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: ChenJi, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Kissing, Love Confessions, M/M, Pining, Trapped In Elevator
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:34:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27192484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zhongwritings/pseuds/zhongwritings
Summary: Chenle just wants to eat his ramen while it’s hot. Jisung just wants to hang out with Chenle without feeling the urge to kiss him. The SM Building just needs it’s elevators installed.orChenle and Jisung get into a fight and Jisung finally confesses his feelings for his best friend while they're trapped inside of an elevator.
Relationships: Park Jisung/Zhong Chen Le
Comments: 5
Kudos: 169





	The Elevator Incident

If there was one thing Chenle hated about the SM building, it was the fact that the kitchen was in the basement.

Being that his usual days were spent in the practice rooms on the 8th floor, he often found himself trudging back up the stairs with a lukewarm bowl of instant ramen, dressed up with all his favorite fix-ins.

It wasn’t unusual for his group mates to hear his solemn complaints about his food’s temperature, and most days they would just wave him off and chow down on whatever lunch they packed that day.

Jisung would always ask Chenle why he bothered to make instant ramen for lunch every day when he knew for a fact that his mother was more than happy to prepare an elaborate meal for him. And Chenle’s answer was always the same.

“Because ramen hits the spot after a hard day of work,” Chenle said, slurping down the now-cold soup that was in his plastic bowl. “You know how good it tastes,” He said, looking over at Jisung as he stood from where he was on the floor, taking their garbage to the corner of the room to dispose of. 

“I know it tastes good,” Jisung replied. “But isn't it way too much of a hassle to climb those stairs the way you do every day? You’re fifteen minutes late to lunch every. single. day. Don’t you think that’s a bit much?” “Look, if I’m enjoying my meal then what does it matter?” Chenle asked, tightening his shoelaces as he stretched, ready to start up another round of practice.

Jisung didn’t reply, he simply sighed and began stretching beside Chenle.

What mattered, Jisung realized, was the fact that they only had a thirty-minute long lunch break, and Chenle was gone for half of that.

What mattered, was that Jisung wanted to spend his entire thirty-minute break talking with Chenle, but Chenle’s incessant daily routine was coming in the way of that.

What mattered was that Chenle lived in an apartment on the other side of the city, and Jisung almost never had time to hang out with his ~~crush~~ best friend.

~

Then suddenly, one day, during practice, the dreamies’ manager came in to tell them some _exciting_ news.

“They’re putting in elevators,” He beamed, his obvious winded expression giving away the fact that he had to climb those eight grueling flights of stairs, just to tell them the news.

“What?” Chenle asked, excitement written all over his face.

“You heard me! Elevators!” The older man cheered, joining in with Chenle as they danced about the practice room. “It won’t take longer than two weeks, so you will be using an old dance studio a few blocks away for practice. Unfortunately, we can’t have anyone on the upper floors during the construction, but no worries! You’ll be back in the building in no time!”

Truth be told, the SM building was fit for elevators upon its construction, but it turned out that the neighborhood it was located in didn’t have enough electrical power for the entire building to run successfully, so the elevators were scrapped and false walls were installed in place of their chutes.

During the two weeks at the old dance studio, Jisung found himself to be in bliss.

Not only were their lunch breaks an extra fifteen minutes -because of their manager’s guilt in making them travel farther- but the microwave was also on the same floor as the practice rooms, meaning that Jisung got to spend a delightful forty minutes with Chenle, as they laughed and joked during their lunch period.

Unfortunately for Jisung, all of this extra time spent with Chenle just meant his feelings had more time to grow, and he was finding it incredibly hard to be alone with the older boy.

One night, after their practice was long over and the dreamies were getting ready to walk back to their dorm, Chenle asked Jisung if he wanted to walk him home.

“Normally manager-hyung would drive me home... but he’s busy sorting things out at the company,” Chenle explained, the cool November air staining his cheeks with a pink blush. “So would you mind walking me home? You can stay and eat dinner with me too! And by then, hyung will be able to pick you up and drive you home. How does that sound?” He peered up at Jisung through his dark bangs, his eyes big and pleading.

“S-sure,” Jisung agreed, nodding, his voice shaky as ever as he and Chenle separated from their group, walking off in the opposite direction.

“Thanks, Jisung!” Chenle cheered, marching ahead of Jisung and down a dark backroad. He walked backward, smiling at Jisung as he followed him gingerly, admiring the view.

The walk to Chenle’s house was about thirty minutes, and Jisung found every single one to be agonizing.

Clearly, he enjoyed spending time with Chenle. It was his favorite thing in the world. But right now, when his feelings were making his heart beat rapidly inside of his chest, he couldn’t stand being with the other boy

He was afraid that spending _too much_ time with Chenle would cause him to confess or make some awkward mistake and ruin their friendship.

And if there was one thing Jisung didn’t want, it was to ruin his and Chenle’s friendship.

“What are you thinking about?” Chenle asked, stopping and letting Jisung finally catch up to him. “Are you tired? I’m sorry for making you come all this way, it’s just that I was-”

“I’m not tired,” Jisung interjected. “I was just thinking about the new song we’re learning. I’m having a hard time remembering the rhythm, is all.” “Oh,” Chenle said, nodding as he kicked a stone that fell under his foot.

“And... I don’t mind walking you home,” Jisung said quietly. “I enjoy… spending time with you… like this.”

Jisung could feel Chenle’s eyes on him, but he didn’t let him get a word out in response, because he was running forward, towards Chenle’s apartment building. 

“Hurry up!” Jisung shouted, cold air falling from his mouth as he spoke. “I’m freezing!”

Chenle laughed, a competitive smirk appearing on his face as he ran to where Jisung was standing.

“Loser has to boil the ramen water!” Chenle called to Jisung as he ran past him and into the building.

For the next few practices, this is what would happen.

Their manager would be busy sorting things out at the office, and Jisung would walk Chenle home after practice, eating whatever Chinese dish or ramen recipe the older boy had prepared. Then their manager would come pick Jisung up, and drive him back home.

Somehow, Jisung was able to hold his feelings back for the agonizing hours he spent alone with Chenle on the floor of his apartment.

There were too many moments where Chenle’s knee would brush against Jisung’s and Jisung would have to hold himself from jumping the boy right then and there.

This routine went on for five days straight, until finally, their manager announced that the elevator installation at the SM building was complete.

This news both excited and disappointed Jisung.

Of course, Chenle would be able to join him for longer during their lunch breaks, but that also meant that he wouldn’t be walking him home anymore, losing his precious alone time with the smaller boy.

It was bittersweet, the last walk home.

Jisung found himself to be walking even slower than usual, soaking in each minute he had alone with Chenle, knowing full well that tomorrow they would be back to practice at their usual building, and Chenle would be back to getting rides home from their manager.

A selfish part of Jisung wished that he could freeze time, reliving this walk with Chenle over and over again, for forever. But he knew that wasn’t possible.

After their final dinner together, Jisung slipped his shoes on, walking down to the lobby of Chenle’s apartment building with him.

Their manager was parked outside in a black SUV, waiting for Jisung.

“Well,” Jisung announced, a loud sigh falling from his lips. “I guess this is goodbye.” “Goodbye?” Chenle questioned, an eyebrow quirking in amusement. “Jisung… I’m seeing you tomorrow… for practice. Remember?”

“Yeah,” Jisung said, nodding his head. “But I mean… this is goodbye to me walking you home and eating dinner with you. I’m sad about it.” 

“Sad?” Chenle asked, laughing at Jisung’s obvious bad mood. “It’s not that big of a deal, Jisung. All you did was walk me home.” Jisung would be lying if he said that didn’t hurt.

“Well it was special to _me_ ,” Jisung replied, his voice stern and serious. “Sorry for enjoying time alone with my best friend.”

He turned to leave, not bothering to say goodbye to Chenle, not bothering to hug him like he usually would.

“Jisung-” Chenle tried, grabbing the younger boy’s arm.

“No,” Jisung said, pulling away from Chenle with an angry expression on his face. “Look, Chenle I-” _love you._ Jisung stopped himself, surprised at how prepared his heart was to confess. “I-I’ll see you tomorrow,” he grumbled finally, shaking his head as he walked out of the building, leaving Chenle alone.

That night, Chenle couldn’t fall asleep. 

He felt terrible about the argument he had with the younger boy, but he also couldn’t understand what prompted it or what got Jisung so upset in the first place.

He tossed and turned in his bed, thinking about Jisung’s words as they replayed inside of his head.

 _What the hell was wrong with him…_ Chenle wondered, sighing in discomfort at the current state of his and Jisung’s relationship. _What am I supposed to say to him tomorrow…_

The following morning, Chenle made his usual trek over to the SM Building, inadvertently taking the stairs up to the practice rooms, completely forgetting about the elevator installation.

He was winded when he reached the eighth floor, and his subconscious mocked him- almost as if he had taken the eight flights of stairs as a punishment for upsetting Jisung the previous night.

When he stepped into the practice room, he noticed a lack of _Jisung_ , and he immediately walked over to Jeno to ask where he was.

“He has a dentist’s appointment this morning,” Jeno explained. “He’ll be back after lunch. Don’t worry.” “Okay,” Chenle said, nodding in response.

Practice began, and Chenle could barely focus, his brain repeating Jisung’s name over and over in his head like a mantra.

All he could think was _Jisung_. 

Chenle didn’t understand why his heart rate accelerates every time the practice room door opened and a choreographer stepped in, or why he couldn’t help but feel his fingers itching for his phone, afraid he was missing a text or call from the younger boy.

Before long, it was time for lunch.

Chenle was relieved, now he would finally be able to _talk_ to Jisung, like he had wanted all day.

“Gonna go get your infamous ramen?” Jaemin asked.

“Yeah,” Chenle said, nodding as he stepped out of the practice room and into the hallway, finally riding on the elevator.

Chenle reached the basement, where he heated up his ramen. Once it was done, he stared down at the bowl, the noodles swirling around in the soup happily, almost as if they were taunting him.

Chenle rolled his eyes at the noodles, walking over to the elevator and getting in, happy that his journey was now shortened by fifteen minutes.

The ride up to the eighth floor began but stopped almost as quickly as it started. The elevator halted on the first floor, the doors sliding open, welcoming in new passengers.

Chenle watched as the doors opened, revealing the person who was looking for a ride.

Of course, it was Jisung.

Chenle felt heat crawl up with neck, soaking through his skin. He lowered his head as Jisung stepped into the elevator, not bothering to press the 8th floor’s button because Chenle already had it pressed.

They stood in silence for a few moments as the elevator rose slowly up the floors, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, when it reached the 6th, it stopped.

Chenle looked up to the doors, waiting for them to open, but they never did. A few seconds passed, but the elevator didn’t move up or down, it just waited, hanging in midair as Chenle and Jisung waited, and waited, and waited.

After a minute or so, Chenle stepped forward, pressing the button for the eighth floor.

No dice.

Chenle sighed, turning to Jisung.

“What’s wrong with it?” He asked, as if Jisung was supposed to know.

“I-I don’t know…” Jisung answered, trailing off.

Chenle rolled his eyes, putting his bowl of ramen on the floor. He picked up the phone that hung on the inside of the elevator, and waited for someone to pick up.

“Hello?” He asked, once he heard a woman’s voice. “Yes, my friend and I are stuck in here… we’re on the sixth floor… okay… thank you.” He hung the phone up, and then sat on the floor beside his ramen.

“W-what did they say?” Jisung asked.

“We’re stuck for like an hour,” Chenle answered simply. “She said there was a power surge and they’re halting all electricity until the electric company comes out and fixes it. We’ve got some time to kill.”

Jisung’s eyes widened, fear coming over him.

“But what if something-”

“Nothing is going to happen to us, Jisung,” Chenle answered simply, all too aware of what Jisung was about to say. “Now take your coat off and sit down, we’re gonna be in here a while.”

Although he was reluctant, Jisung nodded slowly, taking his coat off and sitting on the floor opposite from Chenle. 

“Are you hungry?” Chenle asked, mixing his ramen together with his chopsticks. 

“Not really,” Jisung replied. “I ate with manager hyung before I got here, so.”

“Okay,” Chenle said, slurping up some of his lunch. 

And so they sat like that for a while, with Chenle eating his ramen, and Jisung staring down at the floor, the air filled to the brim with awkward tension.

Once Chenle was finally done with his lunch, he took the empty plastic bowl and put it back on the floor beside him.

Now there was nothing else to do except to speak to Jisung. He didn’t have a choice.

“Are you okay?” Chenle asked finally.

“Y-yeah,” Jisung said, his cheeks bright red. He didn’t dare look Chenle in the eye. “Why?” “Oh, you know why!” Chenle snapped. He had had it. “After last night. Look- I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that hanging out together was so important to you. I didn’t even realize that I was being a bad friend. We can hang out all you want, okay? I’ll make more time just-”

“Are you dumb?” Jisung asked, finally matching Chenle’s gaze. His words were laced with fire, and his eyes bore deep into Chenle’s soul. 

“What?” Chenle asked, unfamiliar with this side of Jisung.

“Do you seriously think I was upset about us not spending time together?” Jisung asked. “It wasn’t about spending time together, as _friends_ , Chenle.”

Chenle’s eyes widened, Jisung’s words starting to make sense in his head.

Jisung slid towards Chenle, sitting directly in front of him.

It was only now that Chenle realized just how much Jisung had grown. He was more than just a kid Chenle grew up with, he was an adult now, he had the build of a man, his size much larger than Chenle’s.

“What do you mean?” Chenle asked, all too aware of how close Jisung was to him.

“I mean that I want to spend time with you _alone_ , Chenle,” Jisung replied. “I want to spend time with you as more than friends. I want to eat dinner with you as more than a hangout. I want to be more to you than your best friend. Do you know what I mean?” Chenle opened his mouth, expecting words to fall out, but none came. 

He just stared up at Jisung with his mouth hanging open, unsure of what to say.

“What do you think of that?” Jisung asked, leaning over Chenle, trapping him in between his arms. “Huh?”

“I-” Chenle began, his heart jumping high into his throat as he felt his skin burn under Jisung’s eyes. “I don’t know… I… I don’t really know what you’re talking about, Jisung…”

Jisung scoffed, before he leaned in even closer to Chenle, their noses barely touching.

“Then how about I show you,” Jisung suggested, his cool breath floating over Chenle’s face. “How does that sound?”

Before Chenle was even sure of what he was doing, he nodded yes.

And then Jisung’s lips were on his.

Chenle had never been kissed before, but he knew that _this_ was exactly what it was supposed to feel like. 

The softness of Jisung’s lips surprised him- a part of him was expecting his lips to be rough and chapped, but they were almost kind, the way they wrapped themselves around his, sharing a moment of intimacy like it was a secret.

But as soon as it was over, it ended.

Jisung kept his face close to Chenle’s, and they just stared at each other for a moment, sharing the air in the already enclosed space.

“So,” Jisung spoke once more, his eyes landing on Chenle’s wet lips. “Do you know what I’m talking about now?”

“I’m still not sure,” Chenle replied, false ignorance in his tone. “I think you’re going to have to show me again. And maybe again after that, and some more after that… what do you say?”

Jisung smiled, nodding slowly as he wrapped a hand around the side of Chenle’s face, bringing him even closer, their lips falling into a calm pace together once again.

And that is the story of how Chenle and Jisung shared their first ramen-flavored kisses -of many- on the floor of a broken-down elevator in the SM Building.

**Author's Note:**

> hi lol i'm back!  
> this work is the product of a concept that was given to me by @conceptsbot on twitter so as always, big thank you to them <3 speaking of twitter... you can follow me on there to read my aus or watch me become a babbling mess when trying to write out kiss scenes,, either or. haha anyways yes i hope you enjoyed reading !! comments and kudos are Very Much Appreciated and if you have anything else to say please send it to my curiouscat: @zhongwritings and twitter of course: @zhongwritings
> 
> have a great day and take care <333


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